Roullete, or roulette (French: “little wheel”), is a casino game in which players bet on the outcome of a spinning cylinder-shaped disc with numbered compartments around its edge. The ball is dropped into one of these compartments as the cylinder spins, and players place bets on which number, section or color the ball will come to rest in. Bets are made by placing chips on a betting mat, with the precise location of the chips indicating the bet being placed. Each bet pays out at odds that vary according to the type of bet and the winning number. The game originated in the late 18th century in France, and has since become a staple of the gambling world.

Roulette is one of the most popular table games in casinos and has offered glamour, mystery and excitement to gamblers worldwide since its inception in the 17th century. It is a simple enough game for beginners to understand, yet provides a surprising level of depth and strategy for serious bettors. It is a game of chance, but a well executed betting strategy can minimize the house’s advantage.

While many myths and legends surround the game of roulette, the truth is that it was invented by a 17th century French mathematician, Blaise Pascal. It is believed that he was inspired by an earlier Chinese wheel of fortune. There are also fanciful tales that it was developed by a monk and introduced to Europe by the Chinese.

A modern Roulette wheel consists of a solid, slightly convex disk with a rim that contains metal separators or frets and thirty-six compartments, painted alternately red and black. On European wheels, a compartment is painted green and carries the sign 0. In addition, American roulette tables include a second extra green compartment marked 00, which makes the American version of the game a worse proposition financially than the original European version.

The ball used in Roulette is usually a hard, white ivory-like substance called a sphere, but it can be made from a variety of materials including resin, Teflon and ceramic. The material and size of the ball affects its performance on the Roulette wheel track. A smaller, lighter ball will make more revolutions and jump more unpredictably before landing on a number than a larger, heavier ball.

Prior to the wheel’s spin, bettors place their chips on a betting mat that corresponds to the numbers on the roulette wheel. Each roulette table carries a placard that describes the minimum and maximum bets allowed. Most roulette tables have a $5 minimum inside bet and a $1,000 maximum outside bet. Before playing, a player should set a budget for his or her play and choose a roulette table that is within this budget. The dealer will tell the player how much each of his or her chips is worth, indicate that amount on the wheel of chips, and then parcel the chips out to the player.